Movie review: Finale of the ‘Dragon’ trilogy drags its tail a bit

Wednesday

Previously, in my reviews of the “How to Train Your Dragon” series ...

For “How to Train Your Dragon” (2010), I suggested that the film be renamed “How to Be Trained by Your Dragon.”

For “How to Train Your Dragon 2” (2014), I wrote, “There isn’t a lick of dragon training in this one, either.”

Sorry, folks, in the new one, which ties the story up into a neat trilogy, Hiccup (Jay Baruchel), the heroic but awkward chief of the Viking tribe, is still just friends with, rather than the instructor of, the Night Fury dragon named Toothless, who has become the local Alpha dragon. Nope, there is no dragon training in these movies. But there’s more than enough action and comedy and courageousness and villainy and pathos to keep the minds of its target audience of young viewers off of that.

A year has passed in the village of Berk, the only place where humans and dragons have found a peaceful way to co-exist. But that’s not enough for Hiccup and his gal pal, the fierce Astrid (America Ferrera), and their gang of young villagers, who regularly fly out on their trusty steeds to release dragons that have been caged in other villages.

It’s in one of those villages, after one of these raids, that the malevolent, dragon-hating dragon slayer Grimmel (F. Murray Abraham) appears, claiming to have eliminated the world of all Night Furies, all but that lone survivor, Toothless, upon whom Grimmel’s sights are now set.

But Grimmel is wrong, as there was another survivor in his most recent assault on a dragon population: A female Night Fury which, in due time, gets the nickname of Light Fury and becomes the love interest of Toothless. That plot turn shouldn’t be much of a surprise, as it had already been made clear that Hiccup and Astrid were on their way to becoming a couple, and this time around, there’s even talk of an impending marriage.

But, again, action and comedy and villainy take precedence over all else here. Grimmel, who really wants to kill all dragons, but keeps a flock of drugged specimens under his control for purposes of war, sets up a plot in which other dragon haters will join him in an attack on Berk and its human and dragon inhabitants. Not-so-fearless leader Hiccup gets wind of this, and tries to convince his tribe that they’d be much better off if they all left, all jumped aboard their ships or on top of their dragons and set out to find the mythical Hidden World, where every day is paradise and, since it’s “hidden,” no bad guys would ever find them.

Because there’s almost two hours to fill, there’s plenty more going on. Hiccup’s mom, Valka (Cate Blanchett) makes a couple of appearances, but doesn’t have much to do. His late dad Stoick (Gerard Butler) is seen and heard in flashbacks to Hiccup’s boyhood, but those scenes feel tacked on. And among all sorts of goofy dragons, there’s also a handful of villagers, both young and old, that add some color to the story, though the only one who stands out, both physically and vocally, is crusty Gobber (Craig Ferguson). Best acting honors go to Abraham, who is gleefully slimy as Grimmel.

Everything plays out pretty much as expected. Dragons are put in danger. Humans can help the dragons but also sometimes need help from them. Humans are put in danger. Helpful dragons are off romping through the skies, in love. Peril levels rise dramatically for both species. But, even though there are some dark story threads, this remains a film for young viewers. You know that everything is going to work out. And it does, after a dazzling barrage of visual effects, a big sea and sky battle - some of it violent, much of it silly - and some revelations about the Hidden World.

“The Hidden World” isn’t quite as good as “2,” which wasn’t quite as good as “How to Train Your Dragon,” but it’s still a well-made piece of quality entertainment, and it’s going to keep its young viewers enthralled.

Ed Symkus writes about movies for More Content Now. He can be reached at esymkus@rcn.com.